Western imperialism was undertaken by mercantilist states, frequently using merchants as agents, to guarantee access to vital natural resources, to establish monopolies in overseas markets, to set up military bases, and to make possible the use of the native population during wars with other competitor states doing the same thing. Is Chinese imperialism any different?
For the most part, no. China is a mercantilist state; its businesses operating overseas are arms of the government, not independent actors. It is using its financial resources to buy up valuable natural resources and to make certain that the governments in its near abroad are friendly and stable. The country’s greatest weakness, from a geopolitical perspective, is its reliance on a supply line that runs through the Straits of Malacca through the Indian Ocean to the Middle East; its investments in infrastructure are clearly intended to provide a realistic alternative that cannot be shut off by unfriendly locals or the US Navy, and it is also buying the right to set up bases around the Indian Ocean. Sound familiar?
Well, except for the use of native populations during wartime. The Chinese population is so large, there is no need for that.